Mixture distribution vane



Feb. 2, 1937. c... E. BEARDSLEY, JR- 2,0 9,540

MIXTURE DI STRIBUTION VANE ATTORNEY Patented Feb. 2, 1937 a MIXTURE DISTRIBUTION VANE v Guy E. Beardsley, In, West Hartford, Conn, as-

signor, by memo assignments, to United Aircraft Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Application August 16, 1933, Serial No. 685,322

19 Claims.

ing the fuel distribution to the several cylinders of a multicylinder engine. 7

The fuel mixture being conducted to the various cylinders of multi-cylinder internal combustion engines must be properly guided. If not, some of the cylinders may receive more mixture or a richeror leaner mixture than other .cylinders and the engine will thus operate unevenly and ineff ciently.

This poor distribution of fuel to the various cylinders becomes more pronounced in engines having a curved intake pipe leading to an intake manifold or a blower, and increases as the curve becomes of less radius. Another detriment that accompanies the curved intake'is the loss of pressure due to friction and eddy currents in the intake conduit, this loss of prmsure resulting in a loss of power in the engine.

Among the objects of this invention is that of providing a good mixture distribution in a multicylinder engine.

Another object is the provision of an intake manifold that will give good mixture distribution and a reduction of eddy currents.

Further andother objects and advantages will be apparent from the specification and claims and from the accompanying drawing which illustrates what is now considered the preferred embodiment.

Fig. 1 is a section through the intake conduit of a radial engine.

Fig. 2 is a section taken on lines 2-2 of Fig. 1, showing the radial arrangement of the vanes.

In the drawing in which like reference numerals indicate like parts throughout the several views, numeral ll indicates a conduit adapted to conduct a fuel-air mixture from the carburetor to the impeller [2, this impeller I2 is driven through suitable connections with the engine, usually by being geared directly to the crankshaft, and forces the mixture into the manifold Iii from which the fuel mixture may be led through individual intake pipes branching therefrom to the various cylinders of a multi-cylinde'r engine.

The conduit I may be a single conduit from the carburetor to the impeller intake or it may comprise two separate conduits divided by the partition I adjacent the carburetor, which conduits merge -into a single conduit adjacent the impeller intake. The mixture in passing from this conduit into the intake opening of the impellet housing It makes a'comparatively sharp bend. a

A series of radial vanes l828 are placed ad- This invention relates to means for improv-.

ia'cent the impeller intake to direct the mixture from the passage H to the iinpeller intake open-v ing in several substantially equal streams. The

vanes Ill-26 may be cast integrally with the in- I take conduit l4 and the boss 28 or they'may be separate pieces secured in place in any suitable manner.

The vanes l8 nearest the carburetor are made comparatively narrow, the adjacent 'setof vanes 2a are made a little wider and each succeeding set of vanes is made wider than the preceding set until the vane 26 is reached, which vane occu= pies all the space between the intake. walls and the center bearing or boss 28, completely blocking the passage of mixture around the boss. These vanes prevent any whirling, induced by the rapidly rotating .impeller i2 from being imparted to the mixture in the conduit l4, thus preventing eddy currents and unequal distribution due to the mixture piling up in portions of the conduit and becoming rarefied in other portions.-

The conduit M is made substantially smooth and without any protuberances that would create eddy currents between the carburetor and the blower intake other than the vanes Iii-2.6 and the boss 28 adapted to support or guide the impeller shaft 30 or other shafts.

This form of conduit finds particular application in those constructions in which the impeller shaft, or another concentric shaft, is led through cessories such as the magneto, tachometer and fuel pump. In this type of construction, a straight inlet or a long sweeping curved inlet conduit cannot be used advantageously because the drive shafts then become excessively long and heavy. In-order to make the shafts as short as possible the intake conduit must be made as narrow as possible in the direction parallel to the shafts and consequently the fuel mixture must make a substantially right angle turn in entering the blower inlet from the intake conduit.

As the mixture is conducted along the conduit M, the narrow vanes l8 pick off a small portion thereof and direct it to the impeller. The vanes the intake conduit for the purpose of driving ac- 20 which are wider than the vanes l8 pick up an additional portion and so on until the vane 26 is reached. This vane blocks the conduit and any radial engine designed for aircraft. This intake pipe is shown in vconnection with .what is com monly known as a-down draft carburetor, but it will be understood that it can equally well be It is, -therefore', to' be understoodthat the invention is not limited to the specific embodiment herein illustrated and described, but may be used in other ways without departure from its spirit as defined by the following claims. I

WhatI claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is: 4

1. Inian engine intake conduit, a blower having'an inlet, a shaft passing through said inlet, a conduit arranged substantially transverse to said shaft, and connecting with said blower inlet, a series of radial, vanes arranged around said shaft in said conduit, succeeding vanes in" the direction of flow of fluid in the-conduit having a peller located substantially concentric with said blower casing, a shaftsupporting said impeller,

an intake conduit disposed transverse to said shaft leading to said inlet opening, a boss in said conduitadapted to support said shaft and a series of radially disposed vanes arranged around said boss and adjacent said inlet,- succeeding vanes in the direction of flow of fluid in the'conduit being wider in a direction along said shaft than preceding vanes.

3. Adevice, as described in claim 2, in which one vane occupies substantially all the crosssection of said conduit between the boss and the inlet, and effectively blocks passage of fluid aroundsaidboss.

4. In centrifugal pumping or blowing apparatus, a blower casing having an inlet opening,

said inlet opening anddiverging from substantially the center thereof, succeeding varies in the direction of flow ofrfluid in the conduit being wider axially of said conduit than preceding ones. 1 5. An apparatus of the character described in- /cluding a blower having a substa'ntiallycentrally located inlet, a conduit having an outlet in a side thereof adapted toconduct fluid to said inlet, and a series of vanes arranged substantially parallel to the longitudinal axis ofsaid inlet and transversely of .said conduit adjacent to said inlet, said vanes radiating from a center substantially coincident with the center of said inlet, succeeding vanes of the series in the direction of the flow-of fluid in the conduit being wider than preceding vanes and projecting farther into the conduit.

6. An apparatus of the character described ineluding a blower comprising, an impeller adapted to rotate inside a casing, said casing being provided with an inlet, a conduit arranged adjacent to said inlet in a plane substantially parallel to the plane in which said impeller rotates, and vanes disposed across said inlet opening transversely of said conduit and extending different distances in a direction normal tosaid planes.

'7. An apparatus ofthe character described including' a blower comprising, an impeller adapted an inlet conduit connected with said inlet open ing and disposed substantially transverse to the axis of said inlet opening, vanes arranged in to rotate inside a casing. said casing being provided with an inlet, a conduit arranged adjacent opening transversely, of said conduit substantially normal to'said planes, one of said vanes extending across said conduit from saidvinlet to said wall and the remainder of said vanes being'spacedfrom said wall.

8, In a centrifugal blower system, a blower casing having an inlet opening, a rotatable impeller,

a shaft passing through said inlet opening, a conduit having a bend adjacent to said inlet and leading to said inlet, and vanes radially arranged around said shaft adjacent to said inlet'insaid conduit and in ,planes'parallel to the axis of said shaft," succeeding vanes in the direction of flow 9. In a centrifugal blower system, a blowercasing having an-inlet opening, a rotatable impeller, a sha-ft passing through said inlet opening, a conduit having a bend adjacent to said in,- let and leading to said inlet, and vanes radially arranged. around said shaft adjacent to said inlet in said conduit and ma plane parallel to the axis of said shaft, one of said vanes extending from adjacent said-inlet tothe side of said conduit opposed 'to said inlet and acting to prevent circulation ofifluid around said shaft in said conduit. n I

10. In a centrifugal blower system, a blower casing having an inlet opening, a rotatable impeller, a'shaft passing through said inlet opening, a conduit having a bend adjacent to said inlet and leading to said inlet, and vanes radially arranged around said shaft adjacent to said inlet in said conduit and in planes parallel to the axis of said-shaft, succeeding vanes in the direction of' flow 'of fluid in said conduit being wider.

an intakefconduit arranged transversely to said shaft and leading to said inletopening', a said conduit adapted to support said shaftnand a series of radially disposed vanes around'said-boss adjacent to said inlet and in planes substantially parallel to said shaft, succeeding vanes in the direction of flow of fluid in said conduit being wider in a direction along said shaft than precedingones.

arranged i in, a direction along the axis of said shaft than 12. In an engine intake system having a blower, I

a substantially circular blower casing having a centrally located inlet opening. a rotatable impeller located substantially ccncentric with said blower casing, a shaft supporting said impellenan intake conduit arranged transversely to said shaft and leading to said inlet opening, a boss in said conduit adapted to support said shaft. and a series of radially disposed vanes arranged around said boss in planes substantially parallel to said shaft and adjacent to said inlet, one of said vanes extending in-a direction parallel'to the axis of said shaft to occupy substantially all of cross section of said conduit between said boss and said inlet to eflectively block the passage of fluid around said boss.

13. In a rotary blower, a blower casing having an annular outlet chamber, an impeller-chamber and an inlet opening at one side of said impeller chamber, an impeller in said impeller chamber,

a drive shaft for said impeller, an inlet conduit having an annular chamber overlying said inlet opening and concentric therewith and a passage opening into one side of said inlet chamber, a boss in said inlet chamber to provide a bearing for said impeller drive shaft, a transverse partition in said inlet chamber opposite said passage opening, and

a series of spaced radially extending vanes upon each side of said partition, said vanes being carried by said boss and overlying said inlet opening and extendinginto said inlet conduit chamber,

consecutive vanes in each series projecting into.

ber providedwith -a wall overlying and spaced from said inlet opening, an integral annular portion extending from said wall to the periphery of said inlet opening and a passage opening into said annular portion, a boss on said wall extending into said inlet chamber, a transverse partition in said chamber on the side of said boss opposite said passage opening, and a series of radial vanes on said boss between each side of said partition and said passage opening, successive vanes in each series from said partition to said passage opening being spaced greater distances from said wall than preceding ones.

15. In a rotary blower, a blower casing having a distributing chamber, an impeller chamber and an inlet opening in one side of said impeller chamber, an inlet conduit having an inlet chain ber concentric with said inlet opening and a passage opening into the periphery of said inlet chamber, a boss concentric with said inlet chamber and said inlet opening extending into said inlet chamber, and a pluralityof radially disposed vanes around said boss in said chamber, one oi said vanes being disposed opposite said passage opening and constituting a transverse partition in said inlet chamber, the vanes upon each side peller axis,

of said partition being consecutively reduced in extent in a direction axially of said boss from said partition to said passage opening.

16. In .a rotary blower, a blower casing having a distributing chamber, an impeller chamber and an inlet opening in one side of said impeller chamber, an inlet conduit having an inlet chamber concentric with said inlet opening and a passage opening into the periphery of said inlet chamber, a boss concentric with said inlet chamber and said inlet opening extending into said inlet chamber and a transverse partiton in said inlet chamber on the side of said boss opposite said passage opening.

1'1. In a rotary blower, a blower casing having a distributing chamber, an impeller chamber and an inlet opening in one side of said impeller chamber, an inlet conduit having an inlet chamber concentric with and overlying said inlet opening and a passage opening into the periphery, of said inlet chamber, a plurality of radially disposed vanes in said inlet chamber between said passage opening and said inlet opening, said vanes increasing consecutively in extent his direction axially of said inlet chamber from opposite sides of said passage opening to the portion of said chamber opposite said passage opening.

18. In arotary blower, a blower casing having a distributing chamber, an impeller chamber, and an inlet opening in one side of said impeller chamber, an inlet conduit having an inlet chamber overlying said inlet opening, a passage opening into the periphery of said inlet chamber, and a wall opposed to said inlet opening, and a plurality of air directing vanes in said inlet chamber, said vanes being spaced from said wall to provide a gradually diminishing free air passage along said wall from said passage opening to the portion of said inlet chamber opposite said passage opening.

19. In centrifugal pumping, or blowing apparatus, a rotatable impeller, a blower casing having a centrally located inlet opening, an inlet conduit connected with said inlet opening and having an axis substantiallytransverse to the. im-

vanes arranged in said inlet conduit and diverging from substantially'the impeller axis, said vanes defining passages of successively decreasing area in the direction of flow of fluid through said conduit, extending transversely of. said conduit and parallel to the impeller axis to direct fluid axially of said impeller.

. GUY E. BEARDSLEY, JR. 

